Long Time Coming
by Vampire Queen of NOLA
Summary: Caroline and Elena end up in an argument- a massive one- sparked by Caroline leaving Mystic Falls to be with Klaus.


"Caroline, come on, stop. Think about this." Elena sat on her bed in the dorm room, arms crossed over her chest almost protectively. Her blonde friend sighed, pausing in the midst of packing to turn and offer a _look_ that clearly said she was growing more than a little annoyed.

"I have, okay? You act like I'm making some super-dangerous decision, I know what I'm doing." She grabbed another stack of clothes and went to the bag on her bed, continuing on packing as a silent but clear message- that she wasn't changing her mind. Bonnie hadn't even tried to argue- she'd walked out in a huff the moment Caroline had told the two of them the news, angry beyond belief. But Elena? Elena was giving those huge, sad eyes of hers to her friend, clearly hoping she could make some headway. Except she couldn't, and the more she tried, the more frustrated Caroline became.

"But it's _Klaus_. You and I both know he's a monster, Care-"

"He is _not_ a monster!" Caroline cried, throwing her hands up. "Ugh, would you listen to yourself? Yeah, he's done bad things, but that doesn't make him a monster!" She was so, so, so sick of the judgement. At first, she would have agreed with Elena, but Klaus had shown her such a different side to himself that she'd finally realized how _good_ he could be. Everyone made mistakes, and his were big ones, but there was so much more to him. Unfortunately, her friends refused to see it. _She_ had refused to see it for quite some time- had denied feeling attracted to him, had denied her feelings for him.

She'd denied it all for far too long. After having a long talk with her mom, she'd come to the decision that she was going to move to New Orleans. While Mom wasn't exactly one hundred percent gung-ho about the whole thing, she at least supported her, trusted her to take care of herself. She was an adult, and the most controlled vampire in all of Mystic Falls- she'd proven she could survive, no matter what life threw at her, and with promises to visit and call daily, her mother had given her blessing. The hard part had been trying to explain the situation to Elena and Bonnie, both of whom were taking it badly. She doubted she'd hear from Bonnie for a while, and now here was Elena, pleading with her to stay.

"Look at everyone he's hurt, everyone he killed! If something happened to you, I'd be crushed!" Elena rose, walking around Caroline's bed to try to take her by the shoulders, but the blonde smacked her hands away.

"Don't _even_, Elena, this isn't about you! Oh my God! Why does _everything_ have to revolve around how it affects _you?!_" The younger vampire gasped, looking hurt.

"What? No, listen to me-"

"No!" Caroline shook her head, a rant that had floated around in her mind far too long suddenly a heavy weight aching to fall from her lips. "No, _you_ will listen to _me!_ Do you know how long I've been trying to get through to you? I know Klaus has done bad things, but he's not evil! I know what he's capable of, I know he'll make mistakes, but I care about him! At least I can come to terms with what he's capable of! You just have your head royally shoved up Damon's _ass_ and you think he's some kind of, like, _reborn angel_ now or something! News flash, he's _not._"

Elena was staring at her for a long moment before she retaliated, her mouth hanging open. It was kind of satisfying, really, to know that she was on the edge of letting everything loose. She'd pent up frustration with Elena for far too long now- and from the way the other woman suddenly snapped her mouth shut and narrowed her eyes, she knew that this was about to be an all-out fight between the two of them. In all honesty, it had been a long time coming.

"Klaus is a psychotic murderer and you're just desperate for someone to replace Tyler! You're just like Rebekah! You don't care that it hurts your friends, your family, the people who love you- no, you're so desperate to be in a relationship that you're throwing it all away for him!" It was Caroline's turn to stare open-mouthed, eyes wide, but she recovered far quicker than Elena, fury marking every line of her face.

"Shut up, just shut up! I am not desperate!"

"You are! Ever since your dad left your mom, you've been fighting to be in the spotlight, to be the most important person to _anyone_, and now, you're basically signing your death certificate by doing this! What would Tyler say? What will _Matt_ say? Caroline, _come on_, you attack my relationship with Damon because you're jealous, just like you were jealous when I was with Stefan!"

"You're worse than when you were emotionless!" the blonde snapped, now wanting nothing more than to tear Elena's illusions down, one by one. "Back then, at least we could say you were a bitch because you didn't have your humanity! What's your excuse now?!"

"Maybe I'm taking notes out of _your_ book!"

"Ugh, seriously? Try a new insult, Elena, I know I can be a bitch. But you? No, no." Caroline smirked, her eyes cold. "You act like the perfect little angel. You think everything has to revolve around you. If it doesn't hurt you, it doesn't matter. My God, I was _tortured_ by werewolves but until your now-ex asked you to do him a favor and come see me, _you weren't going to because it wasn't about you._" The Doppleganger was suddenly at a loss for words, staring at the other vampire with a mixture of horror, confusion, and shame. _Bingo._ The blonde tilted her head slightly, queen-bitch smile firmly in place. "Didn't think Stefan would tell me? He did. But it's okay. I'm used to it now."

Oh, yeah. This had definitely been a long time coming. "I miss the old Elena. The one who wasn't whipped by her twisted boyfriend- who, _by the way_, is a complete and total dick. I mean, hello, you're dating a guy who _abused, compelled, fed from and raped your supposed best friend_, but you don't like thinking about that, do you? But I guess I must have wanted it, since I'm so _desperate_, right?"

"I'm not any different," Elena protested, suddenly stepping forward to stand nearly nose-to-nose with Caroline. "And I'm not whipped. But you're obviously making some pretty stupid decisions. Bonnie and I have tried _so hard_ to be good friends to you, and you're just- you're abandoning us! How can you do this?!" There were tears in her eyes, but Caroline was past believing the tears. Past believing Elena. Past believing _anything_ she said, because this wasn't the Elena Gilbert she'd grown up with.

"Shut up," she snapped, and Elena instantly lifted her chin stubbornly.

"Make me. _Make me,_ Caroline, because all I'm doing is _telling the truth._"

"The truth?! You know what the truth is?! _You are a horrible friend._ You manipulate everyone around you into catering to _your_ needs and you don't care about theirs! I have supported you through _so much_, and when I finally want to do something that makes me happy, this is what I get!" She snatched her bag from the bed, pausing long enough to give Elena a look of utter betrayal. "Well, you know what, Elena Gilbert? _Fuck you._" With that, she turned on her heel and stalked out of the room.


End file.
